Wednesday, June 23, 2010

The proof of the pudding

If ever there is a contest where the biggest prize is won by a community, it is the Bebaskan Pengetahuan 2010 competition. Consider what it would take to double the number of regular editors, what it would take to have 60% of them to be female? What it would take to challenge any Wikipedia for the quality of the new articles that were written?

I think the Indonesian chapter has proven itself with a carefully organised and flawlessly executed competition. They have set the standard for involving universities in an effective and also cost effective way. Impressive is the scoring methodology; the criteria were published in advance, each jury member scored independently but at the same time the results could be challenged. This competition proves that projects like this can be run anywhere.

On the foundation-l there is again a lot of talk about getting women involved in our projects. This competition makes the Indonesian Wikipedia shine. Consider; the contest was organised by a woman, it was won by a woman but more importantly 60% of the new editors are women!!

I sincerely hope that the innovative approaches taken with the Bebaskan Pengetahuan 2010 competition will find many encores.
Thanks,
GerardM